Found
by laksanabayushiryuu
Summary: AU. It was not his intention to get closer to the boy, but Inukai Genpachi could not help but mesmerized by a pair of turquoise eyes that easily penetrated his heart. Was he falling in love with Inue Shinobu whom he had just met several months ago? - Side story of Innocent Encounter. GenpachiShinobu pairing.
1. Chapter 1

Hello, everyone. This time we decided to write story about Shinobu and Genpachi! They're so adorable together! *squeals* We would like to tell you that you might find some real-life Japanese government and law enforcement institutions on this story but, again, none of the conflict and characters on those institutions existed. It's purely the author's fault for watching too much Japanese detective-themed doramas. Well, then...enjoy!

MPD : (Tokyo) Metropolitan Police Department

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Chapter 1 : Phone Call

"Go! Go! Go!"

Inukai Genpachi ran upstairs with some police officers following behind. Their steps echoed through the empty, abandoned building near Kabuki-cho Nichome. Early this morning, he had gotten a report that the building had been used as illegal gambling place. The owner was also wanted by police since several months ago for fraud and illegal drug possession. Such things happened a lot in this area. The Tokyo's most famous red light district was the place where pleasure and crime were connected by thin thread. For Genpachi who had been assigned in Shinjuku area since he had joined the law enforcement, dealing with this kind of crime was everyday's business. Today was not that bad; at least it was not a case of homicide—gosh, enough with hosts killing each other. Running around to catch criminal was obviously not fun at all but he could bear with it. He was a good runner, thanked to those younger days doing marathon.

"Inukai-san, he's at the rooftop!" One of officer in uniform informed him.

Genpachi nodded. His brain automatically began to calculate the next move—opened the rooftop door, approached the criminal calmly, told him to put his gun down, caught the criminal, and...done. Too bad it was not as easy as it looked. The criminal would probably keep running until the edge of rooftop and say something to threaten the police officers—stupid move, why those people never learned from past mistake?—then the officers would back off a little before roughly pinning the criminal onto cold hard rooftop floor. Or, the worst case scenario...

"If you get any closer, I'll jump!" shouted the criminal who had already stood about forty centimeters away from the edge of rooftop. He lifted up an army knife and pointed at Genpachi.

"No, you won't," said Genpachi calmly, "You don't want to end your life. Give up already. You're not going anywhere." If it had been an action movie, he would have approached the criminal with a gun in hand. Too bad life ain't that sweet, Genpachi muttered under his breath. He glanced a police officer in uniform, gesturing him to approach the criminal from another side. The officer nodded slightly before carefully took a step. Genpachi drew a breath and continued, "Listen, you better give up and face the trial instead of jumping from there. Don't do..." Genpachi saw a movement from the corner of his eyes. Two officers were coming toward the criminal. "...anything stupid."

And those officers tackled the man within seconds. The criminal shouted and cursed, struggling to get away from two of them. Genpachi hurriedly snatched away the knife from his hand then sighed in relief. "Take him to the station," Genpachi said, patting the two officers' shoulder, "You guys are the best."

The officers grinned before dragging the criminal out of the building where the police cars were waiting with its load siren. Genpachi followed them while checking his e-mails and text messages on smart phone. When he just reached the entrance, his phone rang loudly. Genpachi frowned as he recognized the caller ID.

"Oi, Gen, busy day?" said a man on the phone.

"As always," replied Genpachi, glancing at the criminal shoved into one of police cars, "What do you need, Nachi?"

Genpachi swore his friend and fellow detective, Hinozuka Nachi, was smirking right now. "I just want to warn you. The old men demanded your presence for next meeting. Think that they've enough with all your excuses. Or...you better work your brain harder to make smarter excuse. How's that sound?"

"Perfect," said Genpachi in sarcasm, "I shall buy earplugs for the meeting. Would you like me to buy you a pair too?"

"Nah, I'm good. I have my iPod."

The two detectives ended the phone call with snicker.

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Shinjuku Police Station was located at among skyscrapers. The station looked so small especially if compared with Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. Around six hundred people worked at the station, making it the biggest police station in Japan. For some people, being assigned at Shinjuku was a great experience as a cop. The ward had everything there; government building to business complexes and of course red light districts. Moreover, even though Japan had low criminal rate, the criminal activities still happened in Shinjuku quite frequently—from pick-pocketing to murder. However, for certain people, working at Shinjuku Police Station was so tiring. Law enforcement career barely knew vacation, except perhaps for certain ranks of police officers. It also depended on what section they were assigned too. For people who worked for criminal investigation section, catching criminal and doing paperwork were daily basis. Surviving allnighter only with horrible food from convenience store and cheap coffee was to be expected.

"Don't we have budget to get another cabinet in this room?" A man in his early thirties sighed as he stared at an empty space next to a shelf. "There's no way we can put more file into that poor thing." He pointed at a cabinet which had overloaded stacks of folders inside then grumbled, "At this rate, I must give up my desk. I barely can sit properly without having my elbows hit those piles of file!"

"Well, actually we only need to tidy up the investigation and report files. I think most of those will fit inside the cabinet," said the oldest and most senior man at the room, smiling.

"Yamaguchi, stop complaining. Our chief is right." Another deep voice joined their conversation. Genpachi entered his unit room holding two boxes of evidence from the last criminal investigation. "But, Chief," the man continued as he turned his head to the older man, "I think you also should ask for additional budget."

The man who was called 'Chief' hummed and tapped his finger on table surface lightly. He smiled again. "I'll think of something," replied Unit Chief Sakamoto Eiichi, "Then...how's the investigation so far, Inukai-kun?"

Yamaguchi and Chief Sakamoto spun on their seat to face a white board with so many papers and handwriting on its surface. Putting his boxes on the top of some random files, he began his explanation to his colleagues, "According to witnesses, some suspicious looking people entered the apartment building where our victim lived before. Since about two months ago, two particular people were seen exiting the victim's apartment around midnight. One of them was identified as Sato's inner circle, while another one is—"

"Wait, wait. Kato?" Yamaguchi interrupted, "You mean Kato as in..."

"Yes, Kato Takafumi, the man we caught at abandoned building in Nichome a week ago." Genpachi nodded and Chief Sakamoto gestured him to continue. "Apparently he's quite involved with Shiou Branch from Senkou Group."

"Do we need to inform MPD's organized crime control bureau?" asked Yamaguchi to Chief Sakamoto, "They've been watching Shiou Branch for long, right, Chief?"

Chief Sakamoto gave a vague nod while Genpachi pretended not seeing anything. The man continued with his explanation. He only stopped when his unit's other three members came back from another long investigation. Genpachi took a brief look at his surroundings. Another ordinary boring day to pass, he noted. If people though earning a living as a detective could lead into extraordinary working pattern, it was not entirely true. There was a pattern—investigation, catching or chasing criminals, paperwork, and so on. When Genpachi finished talking, Chief Sakamoto decided that it was time for lunch. Their colleagues cheered in delight and left for office cafeteria and convenience store across the street.

Genpachi was about to enter convenience store when he heard a ringtone sound from his smart phone. The man smiled as he recognized the ringtone he had set for that phone number. "Hello, Shinobu."

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The maple leaves had turned into red color and slowly piled up on the grass ground. In the end of November, the wind was getting stronger and the temperature was slowly dropping. People had changed their thin, short sleeved clothes into warmer ones. Less and less students spent their lunch time at garden, avoiding the cold wind. The pond area which was always full during spring and summer looked really lonely today. Only several students were seen sitting at benches but they did not stay too long. When the stronger wind blew their hair, they hurriedly went inside school building. A group of three freshmen ran through first floor corridor while jokingly shoved each other. Suddenly one of them bumped into someone.

"No running at corridor," said that person. The three freshmen looked up to see a blond student looking back at them. His turquoise eyes were and dazzling, reminded people of Great Barrier Reef from bird's eye view.

"Uhm...I'm...uuh, we are sorry, Senpai," one of the freshmen stuttered, "We...uhm..."

"That's okay," said the blonde, smiling, "Just be careful next time."

They nodded then resumed their walking quickly. The student who had talked to the blonde sighed in relief, earning an arched eyebrow from his friends. "Even though he isn't student council secretary anymore, Inue-senpai always looks very charismatic," he whispered.

"I don't think charismatic is a right word. Mesmerizing?" Another boy, the tallest among them, glanced over his shoulder. He saw the blonde was still standing on his previous spot but he was not alone. The blonde was talking to some students he recognized as student council members. "I don't know about this," continued to boy as he turned to his friends, "but some people said that he has been accepted to medical school through recommendation."

"He's good looking and has brain," the last boy whined, "Life's not fair..."

His two friends laughed while nudging him on ribs, unaware of a pair of turquoise eyes staring at them.

Inue Shinobu only smiled at the three first year students. It reminded him so much of his days as freshman. Running through corridor, sneaking behind teachers, club activities... Gosh, he would miss those things so much. By next spring, he would leave this high school and enter university. No more uniform and heavy books on his bag. Shinobu turned around and continued walking to second floor where his classroom was located. His eyes wandered throughout the window glass only to find gloomy autumn sky. He sighed as he remembered winter was coming soon. He did not really like winter. He did not like its cloudy sky and cold feeling on his feet and fingertips. Shinobu was not a fan of heavy winter coat—it made him looked like a balloon. He hoped his uncle would not drag him all the way to for skiing and ice skating for winter break.

Speaking of his uncle... Well, Hazuki seemed to be in a very bad mood because Shinobu had said he would not spend this weekend at home. He had promised his friend—a girl named Hamaji—to go to museums together with her boyfriend for so-called...double date. Shinobu groaned inwardly. He wondered how Hamaji concluded that he was dating someone. No, he did not date anyone. He was just...yes, he was just close to this person. Hamaji had laughed at that statement—saying that Shinobu had had no idea what he had been talking about.

Shinobu pulled out his smart phone, staring at its screen as if it was staring him back. The blonde went through the contact list absentmindedly and stopped when he saw one name. If Hamaji had been here, the girl would have grinned madly at him. Shinobu shivered at the thought. He unconsciously tapped a dial sign on his smart phone. The boy gasped and he tried to cancelled the call. Too bad the other person had picked the call first.

"Hello, Shinobu." A deep, too familiar voice echoed through his ear. Shinobu did not say anything. "Shinobu?" The man asked again, this time with a hint of concern, "Are you there?"

Oh, well...

"Yes, Genpachi-san." Shinobu answered while straightening his back. He leaned against a wall next to window. "I just want to remind you about tomorrow."

"Oh, the museum? Sure, I won't miss it," replied Genpachi in light tone, "What are you doing now, Shinobu?"

"Me? Hmm, let's see..." His eyes went back to the window, looking down to grassy ground with colorful dried maple leaves on its surface. "I just came back from cafeteria."

Genpachi laughed. "Lunchtime chaos?"

Shinobu laughed too. The cafeteria always turned into a battle field during lunchtime, thanked to limited edition special lunch box and super delicious melon bread. Shinobu often brought his own lunch box to school but sometimes he just completely forgot. "It was like The Hunger Games without any arrow," Shinobu said, "I bet you're having lunch now? Convenience store?"

"The greatest place to get lunch ever," replied Genpachi, followed by voice of man on background. It seemed that Genpachi at cashier counter. "So...I'll see you tomorrow?"

Shinobu smiled. "Yes. Have a good da—"

"Wait, wait!" Genpachi cut him off. "What about dinner? My treat."

The first thing Shinobu had learned about Genpachi's character had been his impulsive nature. The man often call him out of the blue to get dinner or afternoon coffee together. Sometimes Genpachi just showed up when Shinobu was hanging out with his best friend. Shinobu—much to his own surprise—did not mind. It felt like listening to audio novel whenever Genpachi told him about criminal cases the black haired man had solved. They also shared same interest in books and American TV series even though the man barely had time to watch TV.

"You mean, tonight?" Shinobu asked back. "But we..."

"...are going to meet tomorrow, I know." Genpachi continued, "Listen, you don't have to—"

Shinobu could not suppress his smirk anymore. He finally said, "Felicitá? Seven fifteen?"

"Felicitá, seven fifteen." Genpachi repeated.

Now, Shinobu needed to tell his father that he would not join them for dinner. He hoped his uncle would not be hopping mad since the man did not get along that well with Genpachi. Tonight was going to be very interesting.

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tbc


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 : Friends?

It all started with a notebook.

...and no matter how cheesy it sounded, yes it all started with a notebook.

Several months ago, Genpachi had accidentally dropped his notebook in front of his favorite Italian restaurant. He had not realized that until there had been someone waiting for him at Shinjuku Police Station's lobby. The person had introduced himself as Inue Shinobu. The first time Genpachi had met Shinobu—even though the boy had seen him at the restaurant before—the detective had been caught by Shinobu's turquoise eyes. The very pair of eyes had been looking at him directly, as if its turquoise orbs had tried to break into his mind. Genpachi had had odd shiver at the thought, to be honest.

Shinobu had picked and returned his notebook.

Guessing the boy had probably been only on his first year, Genpachi then had cursed inwardly how stupid he had been to drop such important notebook. He always wrote his investigation on the notebook, describing into details and sometimes just simply scribbled down his bizzare hypothesis regarding criminal cases. He had wondered if Shinobu had taken a look inside. Anyway, Genpachi had been so relieved that Shinobu had returned the notebook. Thankfully, the boy had not asked anything—Genpachi hated overly curious brat—and excused himself as soon as Genpachi had thanked him.

When Genpachi had thought their meeting would have been a one time only, he had been taken aback by a simple green post-it attached on one of his notebook pages. He had read the hand written sentence on it in whisper: please take care of your health, thank you for your hard work.

And Genpachi had sprinted from the lobby to pedestrian area, searching frantically for a boy that he had only know several minutes before. His stomach had been twisted in a very strange way. It had been a weird, odd feeling. When he had finally found Shinobu among the crowd, Genpachi had lost for words. In the end, he he only managed to invite him for coffee.

Shinobu had accepted his invitation.

From a short trip to coffee shop, their meeting continued—somehow. From coffee during weekend to lunch or dinner then a quick shopping trip to Shinjuku. The most bizzare one was when he had met Shinobu accidentally when he had been doing a stakeout. Surprisingly, Shinobu had guessed it in the first place and acted as if he had not been bothered at all. Shinobu was too smart for eighteen year old boy. Genpachi sometimes wondered if kids nowadays were smarter than his generation.

Oh, speaking of age difference...

"...nine years," Genpachi muttered as he entered Felicitá. The restaurant was full with customers, mostly group of young people and couples. Genpachi walked straight to the bar and sat on the stool.

A waiter who had recognized him as a regular, quickly approached him. "Good evening, Inukai-san," he greeted, taking out a notepad and pen, "Would you like for the usual set menu?"

"Could you wait for a while? I'm still waiting for my friend," answered Genpachi, "But, yes, I want to order the same."

"Certainly."

The waiter turned around just in time a tall brunet opened the kitchen door. "Oi, Genpachi, long time no see!" The man waved his hand and stepped forward to stand in front of Genpachi.

"I was here a week ago, Kobungo." Genpachi shook his head. Really, Inuta Kobungo a.k.a owner of Felicitá was always full of energy. He seemed bouncy everyday as if he never knew the word 'exhausted' or 'tired'. Genpachi had been introduced to him from a mutual friend and since then Genpachi had been Felicitá's regular. He and the brunet sometimes went for drink but it only happened two or three times a year because their different schedule, especially Genpachi who were busied by solving criminal cases. Kobungo, worried of Genpachi's lack of social life, often told him to 'go get exciting life'.

Too bad, for Genpachi, excitement meant running around to catch criminals.

"Not with Shinobu-kun?" Kobungo's voice brought Genpachi back to the present.

Genpachi unconsciously looked over his shoulder. "He's coming soon," said the detective, "I came too early."

Kobungo smiled in return. "It's good to see ya like that."

"Pardon?" Genpachi arched an eyebrow.

"You know, to see you close to someone," replied the tall brunet, "The kid is very nice too and seems to like you..."

"Don't you dare giving me any funny idea," Genpachi interrupted, holding up a hand in front of Kobungo's grinning face. He grimaced at that expression. He knew Kobungo would bring out something like...

"No worries, I won't tell Ma about this," Kobungo said and winked playfully, "yet."

Genpachi could only groan. He really wanted to give a good smack on Kobungo's head. "Speaking of Aunty..." The man quickly cleared his throat and straightened his back. "How is she doing nowadays?" Genpachi knew Kobungo's parents quite well. In fact, he had visited their house several times. Kobungo's mother was a talkative lady. She could be funny and strick in the same time. Kobungo's father was an older version of Kobungo himself—full of energy and always talked in loud voice.

"Ma's fine. She's been happy actually."

"Huh? Why's that?"

Kobungo grinned wildly and his cheeks turned into crimson color.

"No, you did not..." Genpachi leaned over the bar and stared at his friend. "Don't tell me that...you already got girlfriend!"

"Boyfriend." Kobungo corrected, suppressing his laugh as Genpachi's eyes turned into saucer. "I know, I know... I always dated girls before. But, ya see...this man...how should I say? He's just...hmmm. I fell head over heels for him!" He ended his statement with hands thrown into the air. "I'll introduce you to him next time. His name's Keno, by the way."

Genpachi nodded. He still could not believe that Kobungo would end up dating a man! The Inuta Kobungo who had always believed in soulmate and chased girls was dating a man! The word had to be upside down now. Genpachi had no problem with same sex relationship. To tell the truth, he had almost experienced that when he had been in high school. You know, teenagers with raging hormones...

"So, I think it's okay if ya wanna go date that boy," continued Kobungo and just before Genpachi could protest, he made a fake cough. "Oh, good evening, Shinobu-kun."

Shinobu smiled politely. "Good evening, Inuta-san."

Kobungo received would-you-just-shut-up glare from Genpachi. The brunet shrugged it off easily and threw a meaningful grin at the duo. "I'll leave you guys," he said, "Don't worry, I know what you gonna order. Would you like tiramisu for dessert, Shinobu-kun? And please, do call me Kobungo."

"Why of course, Kobungo-san." Shinobu laughed in amusement.

Kobungo disappeared behind kitchen door.

"Did you wait long?" asked Shinobu as he took a seat on stool next to Genpachi.

Genpachi shook his head. "I just came too early. The workload turned to be not as much as I expected. So, how's your week?"

"I thought it would be nice to finally be free from student council duty but somewhat I found it really weird to be at home earlier than I used to before." Shinobu sighed, letting a single frown on his petit face. His left fingers were drumming on table surface. "And it's so hard not to go to student council room during lunch break. I used to check whether the president and other members were doing things correctly."

"I believe if you didn't choose to be a doctor, you would be a good secretary on the future," Genpachi said, smiling.

Shinobu smiled back.

Listening to Shinobu talking about his school life and friends, Genpachi noticed that Shinobu barely talked about himself. To be honest, up until now, Genpachi did not know what Shinobu's hobby was. The boy had mentioned about reading books during weekend but...come on, many people read books and it did not mean they loved reading as a hobby. He did not know if Shinobu had sibling or not. He only guessed Shinobu was an only child as the boy had told him that he was often alone at home during weekdays' night. Only one thing was clear to the detective: both Shinobu's father and uncle did not really like Genpachi. He only met them twice, first when he had taken Shinobu home after dinner three weeks after they had met for the first time. Somehow, Shinobu's uncle had ended up waiting for his nephew in front of condominium building. The man—Genpachi had mistaken him as Shinobu's big brother because of his young-looking face—quickly pulled—snatched, to be exact—Shinobu away from Genpachi before giving the detective a dead glare. Heck, they had not even had proper self-introduction. Meanwhile, meeting Shinobu's father was the whole different story...

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_Shinjuku Station during rush hour was like an overflowing pool, especially the time when office workers exited the business area. Genpachi tended to avoid them, and thanked to his workload he did not need to face that kind of crowd that often. So, today, standing not far from Shinjuku Station's west exit, Genpachi could not help but frown at his surroundings. He began to regret his decision to meet Shinobu at train station instead at their usual meeting point, Felicità. He just… He just felt band whenever they got dinner together, they always went straight to Felicità which was quite far from Shinobu's home or school. At least Genpachi could pick Shinobu up at the train station if he had time._

_Genpachi frowned again._

_'Why did I act like I'm love-struck?' He fought an urge to pace back and forth while his eyes glanced at the exit. Then he saw Shinobu walked through the gate in his school uniform…with a man who had a long, light colored hair with fair skin and a pair of turquoise eyes like Shinobu's. Genpachi somewhat had a bad feeling about him. The man had an uncanny resemblance to Shinobu's uncle._

_"Genpachi-san, you did come." Shinobu beamed as he sighted the detective._

_"I told you I'd come," replied Genpachi. His eyed the man who stood behind Shinobu and gave him a polite nod._

_"Oh, sorry. Dad, this is Inukai Genpachi-san, a friend that Hazuki mentioned before," Shinobu continued, tugging his father's hand._

_Genpachi unconsciously smiled at the gesture which reminded him of a pair of father and small child he often encountered on the way from his apartment to working place. Wait...what had the boy just said? Dad? This good-looking man who looked like a model of big company advertisement was Shinobu's father? But didn't he look too young to be Shinobu's parents? The man had to be around his early thirties!_

_The man bowed slightly, flashing a very gentleman-like smile. "Hello, Inukai-san, my name is Inue Kagetsu. Thank you for taking care of my son all this time. I hope you can remain only to be his friend."_

_What? 'Only to be his friend?' Genpachi mentally repeated the man's words carefully, trying to ensure himself that he actually had heard it wrong._

_"Dad, please, you made it sounded like I was still a kid." Shinobu protested. He seemed to be oblivious to his father's sarcastic remarks._

_"Oh, you are always be a kid, Shinobu." Kagetsu ruffled his son's silky hair. "It's interesting to see you have a friend who is actually much older than yourself. Perhaps he can teach you so many things. Right, Inukai-san?"_

_Why did Genpachi think that Kagetsu had emphasized the 'much older' part. He was not that old! He was going to be twenty eight years old next year! 'Old' was meant to people who would reach their forties or even fifties. Grumbling inwardly, he then focused at the reason why Inue Kagestu was here in the first place._

_Meanwhile, Kagetsu threw Genpachi a look that sent a shiver through his spine almost immediately. Genpachi wondered if Kagetsu was also a cop or something. The man was so good on intimidating other people but it did not mean Genpachi would just give up easily. Instead of backing off, the detective replied in polite tone, "Shinobu-kun is very smart for his age. Sometimes I think he's the older one here, not me. So, Inue-san, are you join us for dinner?"_

_"No." Kagetsu was slightly taken aback by Genpachi's blunt offer. He patted Shinobu's back and continued, "Actually I am here for business dinner with my client. Just happened to be on same area."_

_"Next time you should bring your client to Felicitá, Dad. I think they'll like it," Shinobu said._

_"Sure, why not?" Kagetsu looked down to his son, smiling softly. "And remember your curfew."_

_Shinobu grinned._

_"I'll see you next time, Inukai-san." Kagetsu shook Genpachi's hand firmly. "Remember, the curfew."_

_Genpachi was sure Kagetsu had an intention to murder him next time they met._

.

A week after that odd meeting, Shinobu had told Genpachi that he had actually noticed how his father and uncle being hostile to the detective. Genpachi had been surprised and looked scandalized, while Shinobu had only snickered at his reaction. The boy had told him that his uncle—Hazuki—was very protective and sometimes too dramatic, and his father... Well, Kagetsu was only worried for his son. Genpachi had wanted to ask more about the Inue family but just before he could have raised a question, Shinobu had changed the conversation topic.

"...then it just came into my mind." Shinobu's voice brought Genpachi back to present time. Shinobu waved his hand in front of the man's face. "Genpachi-san, are you listening to me?"

"Oh, sorry. I was spacing out. What did you say?" asked Genpachi, running his fingers into his own hair.

"I was talking about how often we hang out together," said Shinobu, "Don't you have friends around your age? Sorry, it just came into my mind."

Genpachi looked at the boy thoughtfully. Well... He did have friends around his age but they barely had time to meet, except for the one and only Inozuka Nachi—they had been on the same year in Police Academy—who often called him in the middle of the night only to ask such quirky question like 'what do you think about black tuxedo?' or 'do you think I should eat natto as midnight snack?'.

"I have," Genpachi finally answered, "but you see, working adults don't have so much free time."

"Yet you have time to have dinner with me."

Genpachi shot him a questioning look. "Because you have more free time, I guess."

"Compared to your adult friends?"

The detective nodded.

Shinobu tapped his index finger on the table surface just in time Kobungo showed up from kitchen bringing two of them special set menu. The rest of the night went by with no excitement. Genpachi told Shinobu about his latest criminal case while the blond boy shared his university study plan. By nine, Genpachi took Shinobu home by car. They said goodbye quickly before Shinobu went inside the condominium building.

Was it just him or...

Why had Shinobu avoided eye contact tonight?

.

.

tbc


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 : Nightmare

"Mommy?"

A pair of turquoise eyes scanned through the entire apartment, narrowing as the only source of light was a small lamp on top of low table. The apartment was bare—a kitchen, tatami room with closet, and bathroom. A futon was sprawled on the tatami floor, where the boy was sitting on. He was barely five, alone in this tiny apartment. Tears gathered on his eyes but he fought hard not to cry. He knew if he cried, his mother would get mad and slap him on his face or pushed him to the floor. Last time he had cried, his mother had thrown a pan at him. He remembered their next door neighbor had come knocking the door, asking whether everything had been alright since she had heard loud noise. His mother had given her a glare and told her not to bother with other people's business, making the old lady leaving with a scowl.

Shinobu recalled how much it hurt when a pan hit your head. Since that day, Shinobu did not dare to cry. If his mother began yelling and screaming, Shinobu would look down to the floor and observed his tiny toes. The little boy dragged his thin blanket to the corner of room and wrapped himself while mumbling how cold the air was. He hugged his only friend, a brown teddy bear which had lost its left eye, and whispered, "I wonder where mommy is going... Do you know where she is now, Kuma-chan?" He stared at the teddy bear. "Oh, you don't know too? I guess that's okay. I am not lonely because you are here with me..." Shinobu sighed, squirming under the blanket.

He had to wait for his mother now. He guessed his mother would not be back until dawn. Too bad the boy could not read the clock. His mother said he was stupid because he could not remember numbers. Well, zero and one were the only number he could remember since it was so simple. You drew circle and stick, done!

Shinobu jumped when he heard a loud banging sound. He scrambled on his feet, clutching the teddy bear even tighter. He took hesitant steps and walked to the entrance area. There, he found his mother was leaning against the wall. Her beautiful long hair was a mess. Her clothes were dishaveled. Shinobu gulped, watching his mommy turned her head toward him. She smiled sweetly but Shinobu felt his stomach twisted.

"Oh, my boy Shinobu!" She cried, throwing her hands into the air dramatically. "My son, Shinobu! Did I tell you to go to sleep?"

Shinobu fidgeted. "I...I'm not sleepy, Mommy."

The woman nodded. She threw her bag to the floor then stomped until she reached the tatami room. "Shinobu, what did you just call me?"

"M-mommy?"

"What?" Her voice was high pitch.

Shinobu began to tremble. "M-m-mom...mommy?"

She suddenly shrieked, "How dare you to call me mommy! I'm not your mother!" She grabbed Shinobu by his hair and the boy cried in pain. Tears were running freely on his delicate cheeks. "I'm not you mother! You are not my son! I have no son!"

"P-plea...se, Mommy... It hurts..." Shinobu sobbed wildly but soon stopped by a blow on his face. Shinobu gasped in surprise. He could not even make a move as the woman gave a kick on his stomach. Shinobu's cries slowly turned into soft whimpers after a while. He did not register how many times his mother kicked him. His body was numb. His mother finally left him alone, slamming the apartment door behind. From the corner of his eyes, Shinobu saw his teddy bear laying innocently on the floor. Somehow it had lost its right eye. Shinobu cried. He cried for the poor teddy bear that had already gone blind.

"S-sorry," Shinobu whimpered, "I'm so...s-sorry..."

Then out of nowhere, his small body was surrounded by warmth. Shinobu vaguely heard another voice. No, it was not his mother's. It was a man's. The voice was soft and soothing like a lullaby. "Shinobu, open your eyes," the voice said, "Shh, it's okay...open your eyes, son. You are safe now..."

And Shinobu opened his eyes.

Another pair of turquoise eyes were staring at him with concern and fear yet looked relieved in the same time. Shinobu blinked. He tried to focus to see where he was. A room? No, not his apartment. This room was bigger and...warmer. He was laying on comfortable bed with comforter and...and... "D-dad?" Shinobu whispered in hoarse voice, "Dad?"

Kagetsu smiled. "Come on, Shinobu. It's time to wake up."

Shinobu noticed his father's arms wrapped around him. "I...I was..."

"You had nightmare, Shinobu." Another voice came around. Shinobu slowly turned his head to his right and caught a sight of another man—Hazuki.

Shinobu nodded, feeling exhausted for unknown reason. Well, if he had been crying on his sleep, that was no wonder he felt this tired. He unconsciously snuggled closer to his father. His mind was still hazy and the last thing he wanted was losing the warmth.

"Sleep, Shinobu," Kagetsu whispered, kissing the top of his son's head.

When Shinobu woke up next morning, he was greeted by over excited Natsume and the delicious smell of pancake. He groggily stood up then followed Natsume to living area. Kagetsu and Hazuki were already at dining table. Kagetsu was drinking his morning coffee while Hazuki was absentmindedly flipped through latest interior magazine's pages. Kagetsu smiled when he noticed Shinobu's presence.

"Morning," Shinobu mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Hi, there." Kagetsu put his cup down. "Do you want maple or chocolate syrup for your pancake?"

"Uhm...both?" The boy grinned.

Hazuki muttered something about Shinobu's appointment to dentist before pushing his magazine. "I'll drive you to Ueno Park," he said, making Shinobu arched an eyebrow. "What?"

"I thought you did not like me hanging out too much with friends during weekend," replied Shinobu, shrugging.

"Cheeky brat! Eat or I'll shove pancake to your mouth!" Hazuki put three pancakes to Shinobu's plate and poured himself another cup of coffee.

Kagetsu watched the scene before him in amusement. "Speaking of friends," he spoke up, "How are you and Hamaji-chan getting along?"

Shinobu had told Kagetsu and Hazuki about Hamaji, and the two of them seemed to be impressed by Hamaji's by the time they had actually met her. Kagetsu liked Hamaji's politeness, and Hazuki admitted that Hamaji was a smart girl—Hazuki rarely praised people outside his own family. Moreover, Hamaji was dating Kaname who also a cousin of Shinobu's best friend making the girl earned more trust from both men. If only they knew how Hamaji brew those suspicious herbal tea... Wait until Hamaji was 'kind' enough to bring the herbal tea as a gift. Oh, anyway... Kagetsu had been more than happy when he had learned that Hamaji had given his son a tour in medical school. The man knew Shinobu always had interest in medical field. Shinobu watched medical-themed American TV series a lot—from Private Practice to House and Royal Pains. Hazuki was often forced to watch those and ended up falling asleep on couch after fifteen minutes.

"She's great as usual, Dad," Shinobu replied, "I still have no idea how she managed to get free pass to all museums in Tokyo, though."

"Probably from her boyfriend." Hazuki laughed slightly. It was quite interesting to see the Osaki's heir being dragged around by the red haired girl.

Kagetsu nodded in agreement. "Well, I'm going to check e-mail on the computer while you two finish your breakfast, okay?" He stood up from his chair and walked to his study room. Hazuki did not miss a meaningful glance his brother casted on him.

Shinobu had moved his attention to his plate when Hazuki moved to chair beside him. The boy put down his fork almost immediately as Hazuki began speaking, "Do you want to tell me about it?"

"About what?"

Hazuki sighed. "Your nightmare?"

Shinobu tensed. He dropped his eyes, staring at table surface. "No," he mumbled. He did not mean to but his voice failed him.

"Shinobu," Hazuki continued, taking Shinobu's hands to his lap gently, "We have talked about this before. Whenever you have nightmare, you should—"

"Tell you or dad about it so I won't feel restless," Shinobu cut him off. "Hazuki, it wasn't that bad. I was just tired and...I was overthinking about...stuff."

Hazuki frowned. "Stuff?"

"Can we not talk about this, please?" Shinobu gave his uncle a desperate look. He hated looking so insecure. He hated being weak, especially in front of other people, even his best friend. Only Kagetsu and Hazuki had a privilage to see his vulnerable side.

Hazuki seemed to hesitate but he finally decided to drop the subject. "Okay," he said, ruffling Shinobu's blond locks, "Just don't overwork yourself. Promise?"

Shinobu smiled. "Promise."

.

Genpachi reached for his car key as he eyed the television. The morning news showed a press conference of politician who involved in fraud. Well, he got more famous, Genpachi thought and turned the television off. He was not a kind of person who watched television a lot. He barely had any time to watch it except for morning or late night news and midnight drama. He mostly read on his laptop and newspaper when he was at his office. The man preferred sleeping and reading—absentmindedly—books during his days off and weekends. Lately, he was so busy into criminal cases since the criminal rate around Shinjuku, especially those in Kabukicho area, was increasing rapidly. There was even a rumor that a spesific yakuza group was gradually taking control over Tokyo. Genpachi rolled his eyes everytime he heard the rumor. If only those people knew what happened behind the NPA and National Public Safety Commision... The latest yakuza scandal in Shinjuku which involved sons of a very famous politician which also Shinobu's friends—Genpachi had cursed on that—had shaken the old men of NPA and Tokyo MPD. Apparently it was like a prologue of suspense novel; the beginning of almost-invisible chaos. The yakuza's movement was very bold lately, and their internal conflicts over power domination was such a pain in ass.

While Genpachi was busy trying to ignore the news, he did not notice someone opened his apartment door then tapped his shoulder from behind. Genpachi swriled around swiftly, grabbing the stranger's forearm then pinned him against the wall. When he finally noticed who the man was, Genpachi glared. "What the hell, Nachi..."

"Good morning." Nachi grinned mischeviously. "You know, this position is uncomfortable.

"How the heck did you enter my place?" Genpachi asked, sighing.

Nachi shrugged. "Spare key?"

"Yeah, right..." The dark haired man rolled his eyes as he tightened his grip.

"Ooow! Fine, fine! I was practicing my lock picking skill!" Nachi grimaced in pain.

Genpachi sighed. "You should have told me erlier." He released Nachi from his grip then crossed his arms on chest. "What are you doing here?" Genpachi was used to have Nachi barging into his apartment on midnight but not in the morning. Nachi was a heavy sleeper and he slept like a log during weekends. The only thing that could wake him up was a blaring alarm from special cell phone they each had for emergency only.

"Social visit, of course!" Nachi walked through the corridor to living area, ignoring Genpachi's exasperated sigh. Genpachi followed behind—in defeat, he sometimes did not understand why he could survive from Nachi's antics. Seeing how clean the place was, Nachi sighed dramatically. "Still not living here, I see..."

"What do you mean?"

"This place is so spotless!" Nachi ran his fingers on coffee table, feeling its squeky clean surface. "Let me guess, you haven't cooked for months."

"I don't cook," said Genpachi, "And I know you are not here for social visit. If you only have intention to ruin my weekend, so do kindly walk out of my place."

Nachi waved his hand. "Geez, you are no fun! Okay, listen, I'm here because the old men of the commision want us to investigate further on Shiou Branch."

"For what? I thought it's not our business to begin with." Genpachi glanced at the clock, making sure he would not be late to meet Shinobu at Ueno Park.

"It seems that Shiou Branch has something to do with NPA. They don't want the media and public find out there's something amiss."

Genpachi sighed. "So, you told me that we have to find out what's the connection between Shiou Branch and NPA then remove all evidence before the public and other cops have their hands on this case?"

Nachi clicked his tongue. "They want it to be finished by Monday."

"Monday?" Genpachi arched an eyebrow. "And we need to start...what? Now?"

"That's why I'm here, my friend!" Nachi lifted his laptop bag which Genpachi had no idea how that thing could be there. Again, Nachi was always annoyingly unpredictable.

.

Hazuki pulled up his car in front of Ueno Park and Shinobu unbuckled his seat belt. Ueno Park reminded Hazuki of the time when he and Kagetsu had taken Shinobu to the park for the first time. Shinobu had been around six or seven years old. The boy had been glancing through the crowd with wary eyes while Kagetsu had given him gentle, reassuring squeeze on his bony shoulders. Hazuki had thought Shinobu would have cried but surprisingly he had not done anything but asking Kagetsu whether they could sit on the bench. Kagetsu had been a proud father that time and Hazuki had felt like jumping in joy because they had successed another mission—introducing Shinobu to public space.

"Hazuki? I'm going now," Shinobu said.

The man looked up to meet his nephew's turquoise eyes. "Oh, yeah, sure..."

"Hazuki."

"Hmm?"

Shinobu encircled his arms around Hazuki's neck and inhaled deeply. "I'm sorry for making you worried," he said with a very soft voice, "It was only a nightmare, nothing more. So, please don't think too much about it, alright?"

Hazuki did not miss Shinobu's shaky voice and slightly trembling fingers. He was always there with Shinobu whenever the boy had to cope with his nightmares. He really wanted to find out what was wrong since he knew Shinobu barely had nightmare for these past five years. There had to be something that had triggered the nightmare and Hazuki believed it would be a hard time to make Shinobu talk. Then, not wanting to complicate the situation, he decided to let the matter slip away—for now. "I know," Hazuki replied, wrapping one arm on Shinobu's waist while stroking the boy's blond locks. He gently pulled away from Shinobu and smiled. "Go have fun."

The boy gave him a wide grin.

.

.

tbc


	4. Chapter 4

NPA: (Japan) National Police Agency

NPSC: National Public Safety Commission

.

Chapter 4 : I'm Fine

Hamaji had not been born in Tokyo. She had been born in a small village where she recalled almost its entire people had been working as farmer. She actually did not remember where the village was located. It was really, really small and perhaps you would not find it on the map. Her family had been so poor that she vaguely remembered his mother had worked for several stores. Her father had been dead for a long time, and Hamaji thought his death had been such a great pain for her mother. The woman had not mentioned her husband even for once. Hamaji had only known her father from neighbors, saying that her father had been a nice, gentle person they had ever met. Honestly, Hamaji did not remember what her parents' face looked like. She had inherited her wavy hair from her mother, and too bad she had not had any time to take at least one photograph of her parents. The only thing she had as a reminder of her family was a piece of flower-shaped hairpin.

The girl shook her head then smiled a bit. She rarely thought of her biological family. For her, it seemed like a distant memory—something that looked like an old, black and white movie. However, she could not help but wonder what if she had stayed in the village. What if her mother had not passed away… What if…

"…Hamaji-chan? Hamaji-chan?"

Hamaji blinked and turned her body. She saw Kaname was standing in front of vending machine with two cans of juice. "What?" she asked.

"I was asking which one do you like, grape or orange juice." Kaname lifted the cans up as he approached his—yes, yes finally ladies and gentlemen!—girlfriend.

"Orange." Hamaji replied, taking the canned juice from Kaname's hand. She glanced at the cloudy sky, wondering if the weather would turn bad later. Going to Ueno Park in bad weather was not a great idea although they could easily find any shelter from pouring rain. This morning's weather forecast had said something about 60 percent chance of cloud but not the rain. Hamaji turned his attention to the passersby. Everybody loved Ueno Park, from small kids to elderlies, making it a perfect place to see how Japanese people interacted with each other. However, Hamaji was not here to make any human observation which somehow had turned out into her quite quirky hobby.

She and Kaname took a seat on a bench nearby. "I told you we came too early," Kaname said then drank his juice.

"Better than being late." Hamaji smiled. "Anyway, have you heard anything from Shino and Rio? You said you've asked them to join us for New Year party."

Kaname smirked mischievously. "Well, we can drag them anytime to our New Year party. I've asked my father's secretary to book private jet to New York."

"Times Square!" Hamaji squealed, "I can't wait! Shino and Rio must come with us. Oh, and we should ask Shinobu too since he's Shino's best friend."

"And everybody will have their lover while he's alone. I don't think that's a good idea, Hamaji." Kaname threw the empty can to the garbage bin.

"Oh, please." Hamaji waved her hand and giggled slightly. "We can invite Genpachi-san."

Kaname laughed. Hamaji talked a lot about Shinobu and Genpachi lately. She swore that she saw a spark on Genpachi's eyes every time the detective was talking to Shinobu. Actually, Hamaji had tried to set up Shinobu and Genpachi on the real date. Real date—for Hamaji—did not include weekly dinner at Felicità or afternoon coffee. It seemed that Hamaji had been reading too much shoujo manga. No wonder Hamaji had picked up Ueno Park as their weekend getaway. Kaname glanced at couples around them—too many of them. Kaname even sighted his classmate holding hand with his girlfriend. Less than five minutes later, they saw Shinobu coming and the boy was obviously trying to find two of them.

"Shinobu!" Hamaji called just in time Kaname was about to approach the high school boy.

As Shinobu's eyes caught them, he smiled. "I hope you didn't wait that long."

"No, no," Kaname said, "Someone's so overexcited here." He playfully glanced at his girlfriend who lightly jabbed on his ribs in return. Kaname made a mock grimace. "I thought you were with Genpachi-san," Kaname continued. For these past two months, Kaname noticed that somehow Shinobu and Genpachi had become a… He did not know how to describe it. A set? Like a lunch set you often found at family restaurant? Hamaji had frowned at Kaname for lack of imagination when the young man had mentioned about the lunch set thing.

Shinobu shrugged. "He can't make it."

"Huh? Why?" Hamaji cocked her head.

"He just texted me a while ago, saying there's an emergency at the station." Shinobu unconsciously took out his smart phone from jeans pocket and toyed with it. He did not see Hamaji and Kaname exchanged glance as if they were contemplating what to say to Shinobu.

Kaname's face finally broke into wide grin. "So…museum?"

.

Genpachi was on the verge to make a grand entrance to main house of one of Shinjuku's most notable yakuza groups and drag their leader to MPD headquarter in Kasumigaseki. Sometimes, he really hated his job and could not help but curse his family for being too loyal to Japan's law enforcement. He wondered if his grandfather and father had been in the same situation like his. Genpachi groaned inwardly as he put another wrong combination to enter NPA's computer system. Nachi, who was sitting opposite of him, arched an eyebrow and smirked.

"Someone's being a drama queen here." He snorted.

Genpachi ignored the comment and kept typing on his keyboard.

"I didn't mean to interrupt your date, you know," Nachi continued as he reached green folder on the coffee table, "Well, you can take him for dinner another time, right? I heard there's a nice restaurant near—"

"Nachi, it's not a date. Going to museum with three people is hardly a date and…" Genpachi raised his hand before Nachi could make any comment. "I don't date. There's no time."

"Yeah, yeah..." Nachi snickered. "Keep making excuses, my friend. You don't date because you are super busy. You don't date because you have more important thing to do…aah, what's that? Doing endless underground tasks for NPA and the NSPC?" He dramatically pointed at himself. "And what about me, eh? I can still manage to find a date!"

"You don't date, Nachi," Genpachi corrected, "You sleep with women and…men."

Nachi winked. "Another joy as full-fledged adult. Don't give me that look. Geez…! For your information, I don't have any interest with your little boyfriend. He's out of my league."

Genpachi sighed and shook his head. "He's not my little…boyfriend." He suddenly felt a huge lump stuck on his throat. Focus, Inukai Genpachi! Focus! Genpachi screamed inside his head then glared at his tab as if it was a crime suspect. He could hear series of muffled giggles coming from Nachi's direction.

Yes.

Inukai Genpachi was on the verge of deleting all important data from NPA's computer system in order to threaten those demanding old men to stop giving him impossible assignment. He was not a fan of Tom Cruise or Mission Impossible, thank you very much. Genpachi rubbed his face with his two palms furiously. He glanced at his smart phone. The last chat with Shinobu was two hours ago. He had decided to use chatting application exclusively only for Shinobu but sometimes he just sent the boy text message or e-mail. He did not understand why youngsters nowadays were so into chatting application… Fuck. He sounded like an old man…

The detective admitted that Shinobu's presence had brought him a change. He spent more and more time for leisure, like going for dinner and watching movie on weekend. It allowed him to have a short escape from his duty, to forget that he was part of special program which he had not intended to join in the first place.

"Have you done sulking?" Nachi's voice pulled him back to the reality in front of him: massive data from NPA's and MPD's computers. It seemed that those two institutions had done good works.

"What is it?" Genpachi asked back. He opened several folders that contained information about recent yakuza suspicious activities. Well, again, yakuza always acted suspicious.

"Don't you think it's time to pay a visit to our dear friend?" Nachi closed his laptop and looked up only to see Genpachi staring absentmindedly at a document. The long haired man muttered, "Love-struck teenager…"

.

Shinobu followed Hamaji and Kaname to Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum to see an exhibition of a painter whose name Shinobu had forgotten only five minutes after Hamaji had mentioned it. He had lost interest on the art exhibition. Weird, he thought. He felt like a hormonal girl who had a constant mood-swing. Shinobu groaned inwardly, scolding himself because he was being so immature. No, he was not disappointed just because Genpachi could not make it today. Well, today was just another casual outing with friends—no more than that. It was not as if they were going to have a double date either. Oh, yes, double date—sounded ridiculous didn't it?

They entered the museum area and went straight to exhibition hall on the second floor. There were many people there since it was also the first day of the exhibition. Kaname pushed the glass door led to the exhibition room and suddenly halted on his step. "My, my…look who we got here," said Kaname.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me. Why must I see your face again after last night? You were such a major turn off when me and Sou—hmmffhh!"

"Well, Shino, that was little bit too much of information." Sousuke stood behind his boyfriend with one palm covered the boy's mouth. He gave them a polite smile then noticed Shinobu among the three. "Hello, Shinobu-kun," he greeted as he released his palm.

Shinobu smiled back. "Hello, Sousuke-san, Shino. A date?"

Shino smirked. "Well, if you could count listening to Sou's long lecture on impressionism as a date."

Hamaji giggled and Sousuke patted his boyfriend's head gently.

The next thirty minutes, the group spent their time observing every painting there. Shinobu was grateful that at least there was no abstract painting. It did not mean that he hated abstract art. However, he found it rather irritating that he could not grasp the concept of the art easily even though people said you could enjoy the art without understanding the meaning behind it. Everything had a purpose and every event happened because of a reason which also brought a consequence in our life. If an artist created his or her art work for a purpose, would not it be meaningless if people failed to see through it? Shinobu felt pity for that artist.

"You've been glaring at the poor painting for five minutes already, Shinobu."

He heard Shino snicker from behind. The blond boy turned back and gave a tiny smile to his best friend. "A glare won't kill," replied Shinobu, shrugging.

Shino only hummed and stepped forward, looking over Shinobu's shoulder to take a good look at the painting. "He looks like you," said Shino. He pointed at a young boy on the painting. He had same haircut with Shinobu. The painting itself showed a scenery of lake with the boy standing on a boat. The boy was leaning over, staring at his own reflection on the lake surface. The color of the painting was warm yet Shino somehow felt loneliness crept from every corner of it. He was about to make a comment when he noticed Shinobu had pulled his lips into thin line. "Hey, are you okay?" Shino asked softly.

Shinobu looked taken aback by the question. "Oh, yes...I..."

The younger of the two arched an eyebrow. "Shinobu, you know you can tell me anything." Shino emphasized the last word.

"Shino..."

"And I don't mind listening to your problem all night long. We can do a sleepover...oh! Or watch Disney movies. I know that sounds childish though but remember when we used to stay late because I wanted to watch Lion King over and over again? Nii-san was so mad after that." Shino suppressed a laugh. "But then he always stayed with us every time we had Disney marathon. I know he secretly enjoyed the songs."

Shinobu smiled. "I remember someone begged and cried to his mom because he wanted to get a warthog and named it Pumbaa."

"Hey!" Shino slapped Shinobu's upper arm. His cheeks were flushed in embarrassment. "I didn't cry!"

"Okay, you were whining." Shinobu rolled his eyes.

"Fine...fine, whatever." Shino threw his hands into the air with exasperated sigh. Shinobu smiled at his friend's antics. "But you see, Shinobu, I really mean it. We can stay all night whenever you want. You can talk whatever you want, I won't complain or get bored. Okay?"

"I'm fine, Shino," Shinobu said after taking a deep breath, "It's just...lately I feel really, really weird."

"Huh? Like what?"

Shinobu bit his lower lip. He had an urge to pull Shino to a hug like what they had always done when they had been kids. Sometimes it was better to be a kid because people would not question if you acted silly. "No, never mind. Just forget it, Shino," Shinobu said, "You see...me... Uhm, with all those things..." Now he did not make any sense at all. Shinobu took a glance at Shino's confused expression.

Great, just great Shinobu...you only make things more complicated.

"I'm sorry, Shino," Shinobu continued, "but I need to go now."

"Wha—"

He did not wait for Shino to finish his sentence. Shinobu took quick steps and went out of the exhibition room. He ignored Hamaji as the girl called his name. He brushed past Kaname and Sousuke who just happened were standing near the exit. When he was already on the outside of museum, the boy drew his smart phone. With shaky finger, he tapped quick dial and waited. His brain tried to reorganize his jumbling thoughts. On the second dial tone, somebody picked up.

"Shinobu?"

The boy was relieved to hear voice of a man who had pulled him away from six-year nightmare.

.

.

tbc


End file.
